Squire of Avandar
Warrior elite of Burglig who serve in the name of the god Avandar. Overview The Squires are the elite warriors of the country of Burglig. In the current era, they directly serve as the honorguard and squires for their god Avandar. Joining the Squires is considered one of the highest honors any halfling can be awarded. In Burglig's culture, even being considered for the honor is a right to a certain amount of acclaim and prestige. Testing and competitions for the right to the title can be fierce and dangerous and the candidates are willing to try just about anything to be chosen for the honor of the title. Only some 300-500 Squires are ever in the order at any given time in a nation known to normally have prolific families. Pre-Requisites *Must be a Halfling *Must worship a Halfling deity *Must have one of the following classes as your favored class: Ranger, Rogue, Fighter, Barbarian, Paladin, Cavalier, Inquistor, or Magus *Stealth 6 *Acrobatics 6 *Must be selected to be one of the Squires of Avandar Class Skills Climb, Craft Any, Handle Animal, Heal, Intimidate, Knowledge Dungeoneering, Knowledge Geography, Knowledge Local, Perception, Profession Any, Ride, Spellcraft, Stealth, Survival, and Swim 4 + Intelligence Modifier points per level Hit Dice: d8 Progression Abilities 'Communal Defense' Burglig was not saved by one or two brave souls, but by a people. Much as Avandar taught the halflings then the value their strong ties to family and friends could also be a strong defense properly channeled. He also taught them how to make the most use out of their size and the bonds of comradeship these ties create. At 1st level, the Squire of Avandar gains the Swarming ability. However, this ability differs with the Squire as they devote themselves to the defense of not just their people, but the deity who taught them how to defend themselves from extinction and any others who might have found a home in their land. Communal Defense I allows the Squire to use the Swarming ability not just with other halflings and small creatures; but with any they would call ally, extending the flanking bonus to whoever they share a square with (i.e. both the Squire and his ally gain the flanking bonus). At level 5 this training in working with others back to back no matter what also prevents the Squire and any ally they share a square with to be immune to being flanked. Finally at level 8, this ability and training reaches the peak of its ability as the Squire can then impart any Dodge bonuses they might possess against the attacker to any ally they share a square with. The bonuses, however, are limited to whatever circumstance bonuses or innate bonuses the Squire possesses (such as from Elusive Maneuvers, the Dodge feat, size bonus, etc.) and does NOT include any bonuses gained from magical items or magical enhancement. The bonuses from any level of Communal Defense end when the Squire no long shares a square. 'Seize the Moment' Avandar taught the halfling people that while first blood may not be as important as last blood, a well landed first strike in the field can easily make the battle in your favor. Squires of Avandar train relentlessly to hone their ability to react to a situation they encounter. At level 2, the Squire gains an innate +2 bonus to their Initiative rolls. This bonus increases by an additional +2 at level 6. The bonus is permanent and stacks with any other bonuses to Initiative the Squire might have or gain. 'Ambush Tactics' The smaller stature of halflings and lack of knowledge of warfare nearly cost them their very existence when the lizardfolk of Gar invaded centuries ago. Avandar, however, taught the people of Burglig that size does not matter as much as heart and a sound plan - teaching the halflings to use their smaller stature to its fullest advantage against their foes. At level 2, the Squire of Avandar gains the Sneak Attack ability, dealing +1d6 precision damage in instances where Sneak Attacks apply. If the Squire already has this ability, it adds to the Squire’s existing Sneak Attack damage accordingly. This damage increases to +2d6 at level 6. 'Elusive Maneuvers' When teaching the halflings how to fight their adversaries, Avandar made many suggestions to turn the halfling’s small stature into an advantage rather than a liability. The Squires of Avandar have taken these teachings to heart and have learned how to use their size to negotiate around their larger adversaries. At level 3, the Squire may pass through any foe’s square with a successful Acrobatics check to avoid receiving an Attack of Opportunity against any foe at least one size category larger than themselves (medium or higher). Note that this ability fails against targets whose anatomy would not allow this (such as oozes, jellies, or creatures whose underside is too close to the ground). Additionally, this ability gives the Squire a +1 dodge bonus to AC against any foe at least one size category larger than themselves. At level 7 this ability increases the Squire’s Acrobatic’s skill checks by +2 and increases the dodge bonus against medium or larger targets to +2. 'Crippling Strike' It’s rather hard to escape a foe that can equal 3 or so of your strides with 1. Knowing his new people could not always stand a perform a stand-up fight, Avandar instructed the people of Burglig how to strike a foe in a way that would slow them down and hamper their movement. Using the Crippling Strike is a combat maneuver that requires a Standard Action to use. Making the attack requires the Squire to roll their CMB against the targ et’s CMD. If successful, the attack deals damage equal to their current Ambush Tactics dice (normal Sneak Attack damage, if applicable, does not stack with Ambush Tactics in this instance and strength or other modifiers do not add to the damage) and halves the target’s movement until they are affected by a healing effect or receive a Heal check DC 15. This ability is gained at level 3. At level 7, the ability also causes the target to lose any Dexterity bonus they may have to their Armor Class (targets with no Dexterity bonus are unaffected). This ability stacks with the first level of Crippling Strike (i.e. a successful Crippling Strike maneuver would halve the target’s movement and cause them to lose their Dexterity bonus while dealing Ambush Tactics dice in damage). The requirements to end the effect rem ain the same and one healing effect or successful Heal check will end both effects simultaneously. 'Weapon Specialization' The Squire of Avandar usually specializes in the use of a particular weapon. Upon reaching 4th level, the Squire selects one weapon they currently have Weapon Focus in and gain the Weapon Specialization feat w ith that weapon. If the character does not already have Weapon Focus, they gain that feat instead and qualify for the pre-requisite to gain Weapon Specialization normally at a later time with that weapon only. This is only gained once at 4th level.